Cleanings & Gum Disease Treatment in South New Jersey

Thorough & gentle cleanings

Our well-trained hygienists provide very thorough cleanings and deep cleanings for gum disease. They use refined, gentle techniques to make cleanings easy on the patient, as well as to remove calculus from those hard-to-reach places. After the cleaning is completed, we use special polishers to give your teeth a shiny, whiter finish.

All of our hygienists have been with us for a long time. Our patients sees the same hygienist each time they come, giving them a chance to develop a good relationship and history of treatment.

Patient Education

A good understanding of oral health and how gum disease is caused is important in keeping teeth healthy. Our hygienists educate patients using intraoral cameras and digital photography so patients can see where they are succeeding and where they are failing in their oral care. Our hygienists will show patients how to best look after their teeth and gums.

For your youngsters, we have big models of teeth and large brushes.

Effective Gum Disease treatment

What is Gum Disease?

Gum disease occurs when hardened bacteria in the form of calculus, or tartar, builds up around the roots of the teeth, causing the gums to detach from the teeth, allowing more bacteria to accumulate in the pockets that have been formed. As the disease progresses, the pockets increase in size and the gums can become inflamed and swollen. The early stages of gum disease are known as gingivitis.

As the gum disease progresses further, the inflammation caused by the bacteria leads to the destruction of the surrounding bone and ligaments, and eventual tooth loss.

Our Gum Disease treatment

Our ultrasonic scaler uses sound waves to gently loosen the calculus from the roots of the teeth.

Thorough, deep cleaning is still the best line of attack on gum disease. We use ultrasonic scalers to loosen the calculus (tartar) and fine hand instruments to remove the remaining calculus and to polish the root surface.

Deep cleaning is also known as scaling and root planing. In scaling our hygienist removes plaque (a sticky film of bacteria) and calculus, which is hardened plaque. Scaling is done above the gum line in cleanings and below the gum line in deep cleanings. Root planing is done to smooth any rough areas and remove any residual calculus. The smooth surface encourages the gums to reattach to the root and discourages plaque build-up.

Arestin antibiotic treatment helps eliminate bacteria.

To kill off any remaining bacteria, we use Arestin® antibiotic treatment, a timed-release antibiotic schedule using capsules placed in the gum pockets.

Severe gum disease treatment

Through our thorough deep cleanings and patient education we have helped many patients get their severe gum disease under control and save their teeth. When severe gum disease doesn’t respond to our treatment, we work with an excellent partner periodontist, a specialist in gum disease treatment.

To make an appointment, call 609.829.3632 (Mays Landing), 609.601.5157 (Somers Point) or click here to request an appointment online.